Look East to Act East：Transforming India-ASEAN Relations in Modi Era

Act East Policy launched in 2014 has been one of the signature foreign policy approaches of Modi-1 government and is a proactive foreign policy initiative. The movement from Look East to Act East was necessitated by the changing contours of security architecture in the larger context of the Indo-Pacific region. Act East Policy has further expanded the geography within its imprint; Myanmar to Australia comes under its domain. ASEAN and East Asian countries expect India to play a counter-balancing role within the region. Under Modi government, India has taken a principled stand on disputes like South and East China Seas stating that all disputing parties must adhere to international laws.